Rising Sun
by La-Silver
Summary: Hanabi Janen served the Fire Nation for most of her life, especially Prince Zuko. After a bounty is placed on her head, she is forced to escape and join none other than the Avatar. Unknown to the Fire Lord, she may just be the reason why he loses the war.
1. Enter Hanabi Janen

Link to Hanabi's picture: .com/albums/g211/youkoselementalkitsune/anime%

Name: Hanabi Janen  
Age: 15  
Location: Janen settlement (Bordering the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation), Fire Nation (current nation)  
Bending Ability: Air, earth, water and fire.

Personality: Childish, stubborn and kind, Hanabi's always been a bit of a goofball and random at times. She hardly ever feels threatened by anything and is loyal to those she cares about. Inside of a battle, she's overly analytic, calm and almost emotionless.

Outfit: During combat, a custom made Fire Nation uniform. Outside of battle, she wears the same outfit as the one picture. (See link).

Clan Information: Before being wiped out by a group of remnant firebenders, eathbenders and bounty hunters, the Janen Clan was a lesser known and secluded group of people. They functioned on their own, without relying on any government, mainly acting as mercenaries to earn a living. What sets them aside from any other type of bender are two main characteristics: Number one being that they can inherit more than one type of bending from their parents. Therefore, most members of the Janen Clan can bend more than one element.

Their second unique characteristic is that their sea of chi and source of energy are located in their head rather than their stomach. This means that their bending range is quite short, but their control is superb. This lets them bend metal, lightning and blood quite easily; some have even been known to fly by heating the air around them and banding it to their will.

Past: Hanabi was born to the main branch of the Janen Clan. As the first born, she was meant to govern over the clan when the time came. Hanabi's mother, Miko, was able to bend air and water while her father, Nagato, could bend fire and earth. Naturally, Hanabi was born with the ability to bend all four elements, which was something that rarely happened inside the clan. She began her basic training as soon as she was able to walk and talk. She was discovered to be a prodigy soon after. At age 7, the Janen Clan was attacked and outnumbered 4 to 1. Knowing they were doomed, Miko hid Hanabi inside a cellar, loaded with food and water. She tried for three days to bend the metal door and walls, but when she got out, it was too late.

The seven year old girl was devastated. She cried for days as she buried each one of the 318 members of the Janen Clan. She assumed that no one had escaped and that the missing bodies were burnt to ashes. After that, Hanabi lost her will to live. She hardly ate and all she ever did was stare at the graveyard she'd built. Two weeks after the attack, an army of firebenders passed by the former Janen residence. They were led by Iroh and were returning from their defeat at Ba Sing Se. Hanabi snapped into a blind rage and wouldn't let the army pass by. They could easily overpower the child, but none of them would attack someone so young and so helpless. Iroh took pity on Hanabi and asked her what had happened. After listening to the girl, he decided to take her back to the Fire Nation, hoping that she would fill the void that his son had left after he died.

Fire Lord Azulon didn't initially approve of Iroh adopting the girl, but soon changed his mind after seeing Hanabi's abilities. She soon became his favorite grandchild, which earned her much hate and jealousy from both Azula and Ozai. On the other hand, she became very close to Zuko and his mother, Ursa. Because she was adopted, Hanabi was never given the title of Princess, and was instead, enrolled in the military a few years after her adoption. She quickly rose through the ranks and became a General of the Fire Nation Armada. After Zuko's banishment, she didn't hesitate to accompany him on his impossible task to find the avatar and regain his honor.

(Send in your reviews if you want me to keep writing! This'll probably be a Zuko story, but that may change, depending on the public opinion :D)


	2. And So it Begins

Several taps on the door to Hanabi's room and made her wake up... Well barely anyways. "General Hanabi," called someone from the other side of the door. It was probably just some soldier who came with some stupid reason to wake her up. You'd think that after such a long time on the ship they'd have at least _some _knowledge of where everything was stored.

"What now?" Groaned Hanabi from the pillow where her head was almost nailed to.

"Prince Zuko has requested to meet with you," Replied the man at the door.

"Can't he wait until breakfast?" She whined.

"Ma'am, it's almost lunch time," Explained the guard. Hanabi shot up from the bed almost instantly. Her laziness was getting her into more than a few embarrassing moments lately. Still everyone on the ship was already used to her behavior, so it wasn't that big of a deal to have her sleep in through meals at a time. After all, little to nothing happened on a daily basis and most people - even though they wouldn't admit it- had lost any initial hope they had ever had to find the avatar.

"Tell Zuko I'll be there," She said as she began to change into her usual attire, a strange style of black and white kimono. She was the only person on board who dressed in anything other than the uniforms that the Fire Nation supplied. Hanabi weaved a small sigh as she brushed her teeth and combed her hair at the same time. Multitasking was one of her several talents. Hanabi stretched widely and yawned while she walked out to the ship's deck. No surprise there. Iroh was trying to teach fire bending to an angry Zuko who just wouldn't stop complaining.

"Hey," Was the dull greeting Hanabi gave both of them as she leaned against the door with her arms crossed.

"Ah, Hanabi. It's great of you to join us," Said Iroh in return. Her adoptive father always seemed glad to see her, no matter the circumstances. Over the years, she'd even learned to call him father or dad, even. Having met through tragic conditions, they had been drawn to each other. In retrospect, Hanabi always guessed it was because each of them had a void to fill and hoped the other could do that for them. Hanabi's thoughts were interrupted by Zuko who just scoffed and turned towards Hanabi's opposite direction with his arms crossed.

"Dad, you mind telling me what Zuko's problem is this time?" Whispered Hanabi to Iroh, who was only a few steps away. Iroh on the other hand, didn't mind to answer loud enough for Zuko to hear after laughing rather loudly.

"Only the usual. He fuel's his bending with brute strength rather than his breaths. I tell him to do the basic sets again and he gets mad about not being able to get it." Answered the old man.

"Let me guess, he's ignoring me because he thinks I'll think lesser of him because of that," Said Hanabi, followed by an innocent giggle.

"Isn't that what always happens?" Replied Iroh, to which Hanabi shrugged.

A burst of flames came from Zuko's direction and landed on the wall between Iroh and Hanabi, missing each by just a few inches. "That's not true!" He protested. He walked towards the door Hanabi was still leaning on and passed through it in one of his many tantrums. "I'll be in my room." He said as he walked away.

Hanabi sighed. This was just such a typical morning. She'd been woken up for this? Speaking of which, Hanabi remembered why she had been summoned in the first place. "Wait, Zuko!" She called as she followed after him, down the narrow hall. "Didn't you want to talk to me about something?" She asked. He stopped abruptly, but didn't face her just yet.

"Am I the only one here who feels cold?" Asked Hanabi, mostly to break the ice. She had to admit though, Zuko's outbursts never got old. She almost always found them entertaining and often teased him while his temper was fragile, just to see his reaction. This time though, she knew he had something to say and wouldn't risk him starting an all-out fight.  
"That's what I wanted to talk about," Said a now, slightly calmer Zuko.  
"You woke me up to talk about the weather?" Replied a confused Hanabi.  
"Not exactly. We're headed to the South Pole," He said as he turned around.  
"What?"  
"It's been a while since we've checked there."  
"Zuko... I'm sorry if this sounds like I'm don't support you, but this is going a bit to far. Both your father and your grandfather tried and failed to find the avatar. Don't you think the South Pole is a bit too much? You need to find a limit to this or else-" Hanabi's words were cut short by Zuko's voice.  
"Or else what, Hanabi? I've already lost my honor. What else could I lose? If you're tiered of helping me_, you're_ always welcome to go back to the Fire Nation," It sounded as if every single word on that sentence was coated with venom. He turned his back to her once again, but Hanabi knew he now wore a look of frustration and disappointment. She wanted to take back her words, now feeling a deep twist in the pit of her stomach.  
"Sorry..." She apologized. Zuko gave only silence as an answer. "Besides, you can't really expect me to go back to the Fire Nation longer than I have to. I've had enough sociopathic 'fun' with Azula to last me a life time. Ozai isn't that fond of me either. He'd probably take away my title as a General and send me into the front lines with my chi blocked if public opinion didn't matter that much," Hanabi's comment was made to lighten up Zuko's mood, even if just a bit.

"He probably would," He replied in a much lighter manner than before. In one of her many random outbursts, Hanabi ran towards Zuko, who was still facing away from her and jumped on his back. Zuko was caught completely off guard and almost tripped. Now in a much more light-hearted mood, he smirked and tried to flip Hanabi over onto the ground. She only laughed in response and flipped herself off gracefully before he had the chance. "You know, you're no fun at all _Zu-zu_." She said, mocking Azula, of course.

"Not funny, Hanabi." He said, even though he couldn't resist flashing a small smile for only a few brief seconds.

"You know it is!" She answered back, laughing slightly.

"Well Hanabi! Now you've doomed us all. So much for the 'Great Bloom's' miraculous strategies," He said mocking Ozai in return, using the nickname the Fire Nation's people had given her.

"Now that hurt. You did nail it though," She complimented. Both of them laughed. He rarely ever showed this side of himself to anyone these days. Zuko hardly ever smiled and hearing him laugh would come as a shock to almost anyone. His three years of banishment made him overly serious and uptight. She supposed it was his way of dealing with the pressure. Of course, she was always around to bring back the traces of the old Zuko she'd grown up with.

It had been a few days since the ship had started its course towards the South Pole. Needless to say, there were already large blocks of ice in the middle of the sea that almost made it impossible for the ship to go through. For once, it was a good thing it was smaller than most of the ships in the army, otherwise it _would _have been impossible. Both Hanabi and Zuko were on the ship's deck during the peaceful afternoon. Hanabi had exchanged her kimono for her uniform, finding it much more suited for this type of weather. Iroh and the rest of the crew were minding their own business or doing their assigned job, which wasn't all that much either.

"Where do you plan on searching after we get there?" Asked Hanabi as she played with small sparks of lightning that came from the tips of her fingers. As a member of the Janen clan, bending lightning came naturally to her. Zuko on the other hand, seemed lost in thought. "I... don't know." He said. He honestly sounded like he wasn't paying attention. Then again, Hanabi was rather entertained with the small, blue lightning bolts that came from her hand, as she bounced it from left to right.

"I'll probably ask the locals," He finished answering. While he did so, Hanabi slowly crept up from behind Zuko and pressed the small bolt against his back.

"AAHH!" Was Zuko's instant response. All Hanabi could do was laugh, but of course, it didn't last long. She soon had to be on her feet to be able to outrun a very mad Zuko.

"Why the hell did you do that?" He yelled after her as he launched a volley of fire blasts her way.

"'Cause I felt like it!" She answered back, both laughing and dodging the blows.

"Could you be any more annoying?" He yelled back, still trying to get back at her.

"Hm… Maybe!" She responded while dodging the blows gracefully. She always had fun teasing Zuko. Besides, it was a nice way to stretch her legs while she was stuck on the small vessel. She ducked and dodged the blows with acrobatics, performed with help of her airbending.

"So, about the plan, do you plan on asking the Southern Water Tribe about the Avatar or do you plan on threatening them to tell you?" Asked the girl. The later sounded a lot more like him.

"Whichever works," He answered simply. The young prince closed his eyes and concentrated. He quickly went into a solid stance and shoved his hand forward, shooting a much larger trail of flames towards Hanabi. She was barely able to dodge this time, so much so that a part of her long, black locks of hair began to catch on fire.

"You idiot! You singed my hair!" She shouted loudly as she stomped on the edges of her hair to put the flames out.

"I know," He replied with a smirk beginning to surface.

"Dumbass, you didn't have to do that!" She protested.

"Well, you didn't have to shock me," He shot back.

"I'm not going to argue," Said Hanabi as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Good, because I don't want to waste my time," Concluded Zuko.

These short, little arguments happened rather frequently, so neither of them felt offended for what the other said, or at least not anymore. It had just become another part of their daily routine. It was then and there that a huge burst of light came from a few miles in front of the ship. A tower of blue light shone for a few seconds, during which both teenagers stared in awe.

"What the…?" Hanabi muttered to herself. She briefly took her eyes off of the display of lights to look at Zuko. The expression of certainty and determination was unlike any other she'd seen from him.

"The Avatar," He said finally, once the light had drowned out. "It has to be him." Hanabi knew better than to say otherwise. She figured it was best to stay silent. Yet still, if it wasn't the Avatar, she couldn't bear to see the look of disappointment that would replace the one he wore now.

"If it _is _him, you'll have to get ready," She finally stated. Once Zuko nodded, she turned her back towards the other side of the ship. She knew that what Zuko needed now, was to talk to Iroh and possibly train himself to the point of exhaustion. The least she could do was go get her father for him. After doing so, she would simply rest in her quarters until she was called. She knew better than to interfere.

Another day passed by, and all Hanabi did was stay on the lookout for any signal that would possibly lead them to the Avatar. That mostly meant staying up during the entire night on the deck. If she didn't have her firebending to keep her warm, she would've probably frozen to death. She stood on the edge of the deck, binoculars at hand 24/7.

"Have you seen anything?" Asked Zuko, without a greeting.

"Aren't you a bit rude? I didn't sleep all night 'cause I was on the lookout for you and this is how you thank me?" She asked Zuko. She wasn't the least bit mad though, nor was she pretending to be. 

"Give me that!" He said as he tore the binoculars from her hands.

"Fine then, suit yourself!" She said carelessly. The girl stood by him, leaning her back against the edge of the deck. She was startled as she heard a loud noise. Turning around, she saw a light burst into the air. She knew enough to recognize what it belonged to: A Fire Navy ship. But what would one of those be doing out here? She turned around to see Zuko's hands almost tremble. _He must've seen something, _thought the girl.

"Hanabi," He began in a clear and smooth voice. "Let the entire crew know: We've found the Avatar."


End file.
